Are you looking for an awesome Vegan Brownie Recipe or desert? I should post this under recipes but because I get asked for this recipe so often, I’m going to make it a headline. I’m into healthy food and granted brownies are not health food but sometimes you need to splurge or bring a dish to a friend’s house. If you are a non-vegan please by all means make this for a vegan friend. They will be surprised and very impressed. Tell them you did it for the animals and they will love you more.
Since I love Thai food I decided to come up with a recipe with an exotic coconut flavor. Coconut oil is my secret ingredient. It’s better then butter and or anything hydrogenated. Adding grated zucchini in the recipe cuts down on more oil and adds an element of surprise to the desert. I’d call them Coconut Vegan Brownies but I don’t use any flaked coconut in them and don’t want to turn off anyone who has an aversion to coconut. I like the name Zuch because I don’t want to turn off anyone who has an aversion to vegetables.
These are easy to make and taste wonderfully exotic and unique.
Brownie Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Nutiva Organic Coconut Oil* (liquid at 76 degrees)
- 1/4 cup organic vegetable oil1 1/2 cups vegan sugar *
- 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract (OK to sub coconut flavor)
- 2 cups flour
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder*
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 cups shredded zucchini
Icing
- 1/4 cup Earth Balance Margarine
- 2 cups confectioners’ sugar (Florida Crystals brand)
- 3 to 4 T of soy, rice or almond milk.
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions – Preheat oven to 350.
Oil and flour a square pan or oblong pan. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt and set aside.In a large bowl, mix together well the coconut oil, sugar, oil and vanilla. Add the flour mixture combine. Then stir in the zucchini last. The mixture will appear dry. Just press it down into the pan. As the zucchini heats up it will release moisture. Bake for about 25 to 35 minutes. If you press the center of the pan and the brownies bounce up they may be done. They will also pull away very slightly from the edges of the pan. If you made brownies before, they look and cook the same.
To make the frosting, melt together the 6 tablespoons of cocoa into earth balance. In a medium bowl, blend together the confectioners’ sugar, milk and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in the cocoa mixture. Spread over cooled brownies before cutting into squares.
* Coconut Oil isn’t that exotic unless you buy a small jar from a small grocery store and pay big bucks. Check out the 54 oz jar on Amazon. It is worth it and will last you a long time.
* Vegan sugar. There are ethical companies who make sugar without bone char. Look for Florida Crystals or “vegan sugar” at Whole Foods. The thing with most white sugar (and dark) is that it is filtered though the crushed bones of cattle.
*Cocoa Powder – I use Nutiva Cocoa Powder and buy it on Amazon.
Enjoy!
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